Positano - History

History

Many years ago, when travellers arrived in Positano, they heard, amidst the peace and quiet, only the sounds of the typewriters of writers and of the musical instruments of the musicians, aristocrats and intellectuals who had chosen to live in this location, drawn by the beauty of the place, the mild climate, the low prices and the reserved lifestyle lived here. Today Positano is a long way from that life style, the daily crowds of tourists making the towns lanes and alleyways, stairways and hidden passages appear even narrower.

A visit to this small town is still an unforgettable and unique experience.

The name

The name 'Positano' can be traced back to two traditions. The historical version states that the name derives from Paestum, whose inhabitants sought refuge in the area during the invasions by Pirates. The other version is that the name derives from a voice which repeated ‘posa, posa’, heard when, during the transportation of a painting of the Virgin Mary, the boat met an incredible storm. The sailors sought shelter in the bay of what is today Positano and, as soon as the painting was placed on the shores, the storm subsided.

The origins

The story of the origins of Positano is truly ancient and tends to be a mixture of history and legend. As often happened in the past, the legend, filled gaps left by the lack of data, and sees Positano founded by Poseidon, the God of the Sea, for love of the Nymph, Pasitea.
The Phoenicians and the Greeks, in their journeys towards the West, must have known of this area, which was at the time, perhaps, inhabited by the Oschi or Piceni. During the period of the Roman empire, Positano was the place from which the Emperor Tiberius, not trusting the products to be found of the Island of Capri where he feared conspiracies, stocked up with 'safe flour'.
The town developed around the Benedictine Abbey of St Vito in the IX century. It was only later that it became populated; when the Saracen incursions in 915 A.D forced the inhabitants of the surrounding areas to flee and seek refuge here. Traces of these influxes can be seen in much of the
town architecture.
During the period of the Maritime Republics, Positano was raided and pillaged by the Pisans, and modified its architecture in order to protect the urban center from invasions from the sea.
Protective walls, narrow, curving lanes, and houses clinging to the coast line in strategic positions, at a height difficult to reach, were built. The town became a busy hub for maritime traffic, even rivalling neighbouring Amalfi between the XV and XVII century. Afterwards, it became the feudo of a number of rich Neapolitan families, and only in the 1700’s did it return to being a ‘regia’ city.
There followed a demographic decline up until the start of the 1900’s when it was ‘discovered’ by the Germans, British and the Americans.
From this moment onwards Positano saw an economic growth which continues today. Boutiques and small companies of a flourishing clothing industry have become so important that they have
created their own ‘Moda Positano’ fashion. Articles made by the tailors of Positano constitute an immediately recognisable style of colourful beachwear. Initially the inhabitants of Positano used silk and jute cloth, and then lace. It was only after the war, thanks to the imagination and entrepreneurial spirit of the people, that ‘Moda Positano’ was born, from the idea of using the so called ‘rags’, or more common materials, to create clothes, bags and swimming costumes.